Currently, in the automotive sector hinge assemblies that comprise two complementary hinge bodies that can be decoupled by lifting, wherein the two hinge bodies are separated by a relative axial movement along the axis of rotation of the hinge, are widely used due to the advantages that they present over other types of hinges.
This type of hinges makes it possible, when assembling the vehicle, to correctly secure the doors to the frame of the vehicle by fitting the corresponding hinge bodies to said frame and to the vehicle door, respectively, whilst they make it easy to subsequently detach the door by decoupling the hinge bodies, which is necessary to carry out other vehicle assembly operations, such as painting operations. Subsequently, the characteristics of the hinge enable the door to be assembled again in its correct position by simply coupling the hinge bodies.
Once the vehicle assembly operations are complete, it becomes necessary to prevent the easy separation of the door, for which auxiliary components are incorporated into the body of the hinge to prevent accidental or undesired decoupling of the hinge bodies.
By way of an example, patent document DE 10356461 discloses a hinge assembly consisting of a first hinge body articulately connected to a second hinge body, the articulated connection between said hinge bodies being defined by two articulating formations spaced apart along the axis of rotation of the hinge. Each articulating formation consists of a pin situated on the second hinge body that can be coupled to a corresponding hole situated in the first hinge body. The holes of the first hinge body are positioned at the ends of parallel wings, which are adapted to be supported by the second hinge body and to support the weight of the vehicle door.
The above-described hinge assembly includes a safety element that can be inserted between the articulating formations when the pins of the second hinge body are inserted into the corresponding holes of the first hinge body, which prevents said second hinge body from returning in the decoupling direction of the pins. In other words, the safety element prevents the relative movement of the hinge bodies in the direction of their axis of rotation, and therefore the separation of the hinge bodies.
However, to retain the safety element in its operational position, it is necessary for it to include a means of fastening consisting of a groove adapted to tightly house the projecting end of the pin of the upper articulating formation and a projection that is adapted to be inserted into a housing provided for this purpose in the head of the pin of the lower articulating formation. It is therefore necessary for the safety element to be secured to the hinge assembly by its two ends to ensure that it will not become accidentally dislodged.
Document DE 10356461 also anticipates that the head of the lower pin takes the form of an essentially cylindrical pin, the safety element in this case being provided with two notches, one at each end, which are adapted to tightly house the projecting end of the upper pin and the essentially cylindrical portion of the head of the lower pin, respectively. In any case, the safety element must be adapted to the formation of the hinge because, depending on the direction in which the pins extend, the means of fastening must be formed correspondingly. This means that it is not possible to use a single safety element for different hinge assemblies.
The solution disclosed in document DE 10356461 also suffers from the drawback that the safety element adds yet another component to the assembly of the vehicle and specifically to the assembly of the door. The removal of the safety element of the hinge assembly can cause it to be lost if when the door is separated from the vehicle for painting operations if it does not have a special control or a specific protocol for its transfer to the place where the door is assembled on the frame of the vehicle again, when the safety element should be inserted between the articulating formations again.
The lack of versatility of the safety element and the disadvantage of adding another component to the door assembly are the drawbacks resolved, as the main purpose, by the hinge assembly that is the object of the invention.